Hello everybody, I thought I would start a new project. In this world of fancy cell phones and what not, I thought it would be a fun project to take my old telephone and get it up and working again. It is a 1907 hand crank wall telephone. It has 3 terminals at the top, and when I connected a makeshift telephone wire to it, I got a dial tone! I could even receive calls, and when I turned the crank, the rotary dial phone on the other side of my house would ring! The second image is of the inner workings of the phone, and the third image is of the stamps and tags inside the cabinet of the telephone. I found this telephone at a thrift store here in the Piedmont of North Carolina. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

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SpiritBear, 3 years agoIt's a wonderful-looking piece that seems to work, but.... When I clicked on your link, it took me twice to my own Google+ photos. The third time gave me an Error message. :/

SweetViolet, 3 years agoHi, and thank you. I think that in order to see the photos on Google+, you will have to log out of your Google Account (Gmail, etc.), first, and then copy and paste the link. Hopefully that will do the job. Thanks again!

blunderbuss2, 3 years agoI had the same problems yrs. ago & can't remember the cures I had to go thru. As I remember, there is a simple switch that connects to the ringer/bells, that switches to the the talk mode when you "pick-up". I did what you are wanting to do & enjoy the old bell sound. The sound is not as clear on either end so I would talk on the regular phone (which doesn't really exist anymore). Short version is: I put an old (maybe 1960's German) phone switching sys, in the wooden case. With cells, I gave up the nostalgia. (Can't wear a blud-clot wooden crank phone on you belt!). The nostalgia bit is only good at home (Land-line). If you really like the nostalgia thing, (Like I do), buy another set & use for an intercom in your house or business.

SweetViolet, 3 years agoHi, thank you for the advice. I will have to look into this switch connected to the ringer. I am also unsure if the terminals at the top are even the spot to connect the wire to like I think it is. Fortunately, I do have a newer phone (but not much newer!), that I can use while I tinker with this one. It is quite a nice thing to keep these old machines around and working as a way to keep the old time days in the present. Thanks again for your help, and have a happy Thanksgiving.

blunderbuss2, 3 years agoOh, they work on some weird voltage. I believe 28v.

SweetViolet, 3 years agoThank you to everybody for your help and advice!